Tracking Trouble
by Sapphire1
Summary: 3rd in the Academy Series – Jazz comes to the Academy for a game of HunterPrey. But then he ends in more trouble than he has bargained for, and his only chance of survival is the ability of one small cadet to find him before it is too late. Please review
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Tracking Trouble

**Author:** Sapphire

**Series:** Academy - The other two stories in the series can be found with my other stories

**Rating:** PG for violence

**Summary:** Third in the Academy Series – Jazz comes to the Academy for a game of Hunter / Prey. But then he ends in much more trouble than he has bargained for, and his only chance of survival is the ability of one small cadet to find him before it is too late.

**Comment:** After I wrote ' Team Exercise' there were strangely enough requests for more. I thought to concentrate on one of Bumblebee's know strengths: that of a tracker. But then the story took a sudden left turn (as they so often do) and this is what came out of it.

**Disclaimers:** Nope, don't own any big transforming robots – they wouldn't fit into my apartment anyway.

**Final Warning: **English is not my first language. What my proof reader (thanks again, Mac) didn't find I totally take responsibility for.

Tracking Trouble

BySapphire

Part 1

Some days it just didn't pay to get out of the recharge cycle. Of course, normally one wouldn't expect to end the day being pinned down by a Decepticon twice your size, your right arm more or less ripped off, the weapons in that arm useless. Add to that a Primus forsaken ruined city in the middle of nowhere and no chance to call for help, it just made everything so perfect.

As Jazz listened to the two Decepticons arguing on what to do with their prisoner – not that he could do much else, with the big ugly one pressing down with his considerate weight on his chest plate – he wondered who in high heaven he had insulted that he saw it necessary to place him in such a situation. Ugly was pretty much for delivering him to Megatron, while Big Stupid One was all for killing Jazz outright. Might be that Stupid was a little bit biased, as Jazz had managed to damage him pretty good before the two had overwhelmed him. Either way, it did look like Optimus Prime would need to start looking for a new first lieutenant.

The day had started normal enough.

Like Ironhide and Ratchet, he actively participated in the instruction of the Academy cadets and every half stellar cycle he went there for a special training session. In this training session he set up a game of Hunter / Prey, with him being the prey and all the cadets chasing him after some time delay.

The game area was an abandoned city, which had been destroyed at the beginning of the war at a time when there hadn't been the kind of protective force fields that nowadays protected any Autobot city or base. The bombs that had been used had left behind a low level radiation that on one hand made a prolonged stay in the city rather unhealthy, and on the other hand made any long range communication impossible. It was the perfect place for the game.

After instructing the cadets about he rules, Jazz had set off. He had been doing this exercise more than three dozen times now and only five times a cadet had been able to track him in the allotted time. He felt confident that once again he would escape detection, even though Ironhide had mentioned a cadet who had impressed him the last time the other 'bot had visited the Academy. The weapons specialist had even gone as far as to place a bet that if somebody would find him it would be the young Autobot with the designation Bumblebee.

For once, Jazz really wished that Ironhide would be right.

When he had arrived at the place he had decided on before as his hide out, he had not been prepared for two Decepticons hanging out there as well. Before he had been able to take cover, one of them had detected him. Knowing when he was outnumbered and outgunned, he had tried to get away, but one of the 'cons got lucky and hit him square in the back before he had gotten to safety. The next thing he had known was that he was lying in the dirt, badly leaking Energon.

Clearly he should have stayed in his recharge berth this morning.

---

Twenty cycles earlier

Bumblebee, together with his class mates, waited at the starting point for the signal to go off. Jazz, Optimus Prime's first lieutenant, had vanished between the tall buildings at the edge of the city only a few cycles ago. He would be hiding somewhere in the old city and their task would be to find him within the allotted time.

The principle idea was to follow the trail the Autobot would be leaving behind. According to the rules, the trail would be made up of small, inconspicuous changes in the environment, things that simulated an Autobot – or Decepticon – on the run. Jazz had said that normally he wouldn't leave any trace behind, and Bumblebee believed him, but he also had said that he wouldn't make it too hard for the cadets.

Bumblebee knew it would still be very difficult. He was generally considered a good tracker, but finding such a trail in an environment like the city would be difficult even for him. And it would take a lot of time. So he had considered a different approach to solve the problem.

After he had learned about the training game, he had done some research. The files of the previous games had been on record and Bumblebee had gone through each and every one of them and had learned that there had been a less than twenty percent success rate for the Academy cadets. So he had decided that following Jazz wouldn't really work. Instead he planned to anticipate where the Autobot would end up. In his analysis of the reports he had narrowed it down to two possibilities with nearly equal probability. He wasn't sure that he was right – not in a long stretch – but confident enough to at least try it. He hadn't told any of his friends, though. He didn't want them to follow him in case he was wrong.

Finally the starting signal came and they were off.

For the first couple of cycles, the group of cadets stayed close together. But soon different routes presented themselves and one after another split off the group to follow the new possibilities. So far, there hadn't been any trace that another Autobot had been there in the last couple of orns.

About half of the group had broken off by the time that it was Bumblebee's turn to go off on his own. With a small wave he said good bye to his friends and headed for a side road that pointed roughly into the direction of the first of his two possible goals.

The city they were in had been destroyed a very long time ago and the wind and rain had done their bit to wear down the structures that initially had been damaged but had remained standing. Because of the radiation there never had been any attempt to reclaim the city or to rebuild it. Bumblebee's sensors registered the radiation as a low level buzz that interfered with his communication system. Short range communication didn't pose a real problem, but anything further that a couple of klicks and the noise was simply too much to understand anything. Any prolonged stay in the city could also cause damage to some of his systems. For the relatively short period of the game, however, there was absolutely no risk. He would have to remain in the city several orns at least before there would be any permanent damage.

The street he was on was free of any debris, so Bumblebee transformed into vehicle mode. If his plan would have been to really follow Jazz's trail, he would have stayed in bipedal mode for most of the time as this would have allowed him to better detect the clues the lieutenant had left behind. But this way he could move faster.

Driving down the street, Bumblebee realized this was the first time since his one failed attempt to run away from the Academy that he was indeed all alone. At the Centre there always was somebody around. He had found friends there and now he realized how much he had gotten used of having them around.

Though he now got along with pretty much everybody in his year, he had also found a small group of close friends. Tweel was considered by most at being a bit vain, but he had been the very first one to offer to help Bumblebee with the problems he had had in the beginning. There was fun loving RV, who was ready and willing to go along with any mischief one of the others came up with. And then there was Bulldozer, a giant, even for Autobot standards, who was the most loyal friend a 'bot could wish for. They were an odd team, true, but it had turned out that they worked well together and also that their differences sometimes could be an advantage.

The obstacle course had been one of the proudest moments in his young life. He had to admit that he hadn't quite anticipated the degree of destruction they had wrought, but Ironhide's words in the end had made it all worth. They also had helped in his decision now to, again, try a more unconventional path to solving a given problem.

The ruins of a tall building blocking his way forced him to revert back into bipedal mode as there was no way to get around it. So he climbed through the rubble, picking his way carefully. Though the building had fallen many, many stellar cycles ago, a wrong step still could cause parts to collapse, trapping him … or worse.

After he had found his way through the ruin he paused for a moment to get his bearings. He was actually closer to his first goal than he had thought. He looked around, to see if maybe here there was any trace of Jazz, but he couldn't see anything out of the ordinary.

The place was very quiet, the only sound the wind passing between the still standing buildings.

What if he had been wrong? Doubt suddenly assailed him. He could be wasting his time here chasing a wild idea that might lead him to nowhere. If he had followed the trail, he would be at least doing something that he knew he was good at.

But then Bumblebee transformed once again and resolutely pushed on. He had made his decision, he would stay with it.

It took him only a few more cycles to reached one of the two places he had picked for the place he thought Jazz would most likely be hiding in. He listened hard, all his sensors at maximum sensitivity.

But other than the wind and the ever present buzz of the radiation, there was nothing.

Not allowing for the doubts to come back, he did a quick inspection of the place, but as he had already surmised, the area was empty of any Autobot but himself.

With a small sigh, he left the place and started to head for the other one. He had only one shot left, now, and if he was wrong again, he would have lost.

Not once it entered his thought processor that in the previous times the game has been played, it was more the exception than the rule that one of the hunters managed to find their prey and that it certainly wouldn't reflect negatively on him if he wouldn't find Jazz. He only knew that after the praise he had gotten from Ironhide, he hungered for the approval of the 'bots around Optimus Prime – and ultimately from the Autobot leader himself. Optimus had met him in a situation that had been less than favorable for Bumblebee and the young Autobot hoped that one day he could improve on this impression.

The second location was on the other side of the city and this time Bumblebee took longer than he had anticipated. There was more destruction in the area he had to cross and Bumblebee had to take several detours before he reached the neighborhood of the second goal.

He just had reached the edge of an old factory building when the sound of two raised voices alerted him that it was not quite as empty as he had expected.

Moving as carefully as he could, Bumblebee peeked around the corner into the old fabrication hall.

What he saw made his spark grow cold. He had found Jazz, all right, but so had two large Decepticons. The two were arguing loudly, glaring and glowering at each other, though that didn't stop one of them from brutally holding down Optimus Prime's first lieutenant. Jazz appeared to be in a bad shape. He was losing Energon at an alarmingly high rate, the blue liquid soaking slowly into the ground. A big, burn-edged hole in his right shoulder exposed power conduits and severed tendons. He was still moving, his bright blue optics still alight, but from the looks of it, this wasn't a status that would last very much longer.

Bumblebee withdrew quickly into the shadow before the two 'cons could detect him.

He did a quick analysis of the situation and what he could make of it he didn't like at all. The two Decepticons were both larger and stronger than he was. They were probably also good fighters; otherwise they wouldn't have been able to capture Jazz, who was famed for being an extremely skilled warrior. What they were doing in the city, Bumblebee could only guess, but he was sure whatever the reason, it couldn't be good.

The smart thing would be to leave before they detected him, and try to reach some help. Bumblebee was all alone and couldn't call for help or reinforcement. He was no match for the 'cons in a fight.

But if he would do that, there was no guaranty that Jazz would still be alive by the time that he and any help he might find would return. Actually, the chances that he would be dead were extremely high and Bumblebee just couldn't leave a fellow Autobot at the mercy of two Decepticons.

He had to fight them, and somehow free Jazz, even if it meant that he himself wouldn't get out of the situation alive. There was not other choice.

He recalled from his memory banks the pictures of the fabrication hall, this time trying to ignore the badly wounded Autobot in it. Maybe there was something he could use for his advantage. His trainers always said that he was good in taking a situation and finding some unorthodox way out of it. Unorthodox was obviously what he needed right now.

The hall was three times as long as it was wide. Two rows of pillars held up the ceiling in the middle, though at one corner it had collapsed recently, forming a pile of rubble. The three mechanoids were located pretty much in the centre of the hall. It looked like Jazz had tried to escape through an exit on the other side, but hadn't made it. Some of the pillars close to the three looked damaged, and it was this that started the kernel of an idea with Bumblebee.

If he could get above them on the second floor of the building and somehow manage to collapse it over them, it might just slow them down enough in their defense that he might have a small chance to get Jazz out of there.

If Jazz could be moved at all.

If they could be surprised.

If he got really, really lucky.

Lots of somehows, mights and ifs, but there was no other way.

Before his courage left him, Bumblebee was on the move again.

---

The two 'cons were still arguing, but Jazz was starting to have difficulties following what they were talking about. He felt light-headed, his processors getting fuzzy around the edges. The logical part of his mind knew that he was losing too much Energon too fast and in a short while it wouldn't matter what the outcome of the 'cons' discussion was, because he would be dead either way.

Unexpectedly, his internal digital communication system came online. It was a system that was barely used in normal day to day operations, and at first Jazz had problems identifying where the words he suddenly heard were coming from.

"Jazz, sir, it's me, Bumblebee. I'm here to rescue you."

Bumblebee? Rescue?

Wasn't Bumblebee one of the cadets in the game? He recalled Ironhide mentioning his name at one point, but for some reason Jazz had difficulties to remember what the weapons specialist had said about the other Autobot.

He wished Ironhide would be here right now – though he would never ever think about revealing that little bit of information to the weapons specialist.

"Sir?"

Damn, he must have drifted again.

"I'm still here," he sent. "Not going anywhere."

Jazz thought he felt a chuckle go through the connection, even though digital wasn't really designed to transmit emotions. One of the reasons it wasn't normally used. On the other hand, digital had a very narrow bandwidth and also was heavily encoded. There was no way the two Decepticons would notice any part of the conversation.

"Good. Sir, I do have a question. Is the weapon in your right arm still operational?"

What was the kid going for? His right arm was shot, he couldn't exactly move it any more, or aim with it, so what would the other 'bot want to do with it?

"Sorry, I can't move my arm, kid. Anyway, you better get out of here and get some help, you hear?"

"With all due respect, sir, I'm not going to leave you. And I asked if you still could fire a blast, not if you could aim the shot. Sir."

What was the kid up to? Puzzled Jazz ran a quick diagnostic of his weapons system only to find that, indeed, he would be able to fire the weapon in his right arm maybe one more time. There was a good chance that the weapon would explode in the process, but given his current status, this might even be a good thing. With any luck, he might be able to take Ugly or Stupid with him.

Anyway, as glad as he was that somebody was willing to risk a rescue and actually had some kind of plan – though Jazz was really not sure what that plan could be – he wasn't willing to risk the life of another 'bot on what surely was a suicide run.

"Kid, listen, you have no chance here. I'm a goner anyway, so don't try to kill yourself. Go, get some help, maybe you can at least catch the two guys here before they go back home to papa Megatron."

There as a moment of silence, and Jazz almost hoped that Bumblebee would see that he was right and leave.

No such luck.

"No, sir. I'm not going to leave you. I'm afraid you're going to have to accept it. So, once again, are you able to fire your right arm weapon?"

Well, if this wasn't one stubborn Autobot? Though, he just couldn't find it in his spark to blame him. He probably wouldn't have run away in the same situation, even if it would have been the most reasonable thing to do. After all, he wasn't exactly known for always doing the most reasonable thing.

"Yes, I can fire my right arm weapon," he sent exasperated.

"Good. In this case, wait for my signal, sir, then please fire."

tbc


	2. Chapter 2

Tracking Trouble

By Sapphire

Part 2

Bumblebee had climbed up to the second floor exactly above the position where Jazz and the two Decepticons were located. As he had suspected before, the floor was somewhat unstable and there would be little effort required to break the material.

Bumblebee was scared. He would be lying to himself if he denied it. But he had come to the decision that he would do what he planned to do and there was no going back on this, even if the probability that he'd get out of it in one piece was extremely low. Besides, going back to the Academy knowing that he had left a fellow Autobot behind to die at the hands of the Decepticons was something he wouldn't be able to bear.

Knowing that waiting any longer wouldn't change anything he planted his feet firmly on the ground, his weapons pointing downwards. His sensors seemed to tingle, feeling sharper than ever before in his life. With a flick of his head, his battle mask fell into place.

"Sir, please fire NOW!" he sent, setting off his own weapons at the same moment.

Below, he heard the discharge of a plasma pulse canon. If Bumblebee's calculation was right, Jazz's fire would destroy at least one of the damaged columns that held up the fabrication hall's ceiling. The damaged arm had pointed directly at it and since Jazz wasn't able to take aim, he had to take what option he had.

The ground started to tremble and within a few astro seconds it collapsed into the room below taking Bumblebee with it. The Autobot, having expecting it, managed to stay on his own two feet, as stone, concrete and metal crashed down.

The tons of stone fell directly onto one of the two Decepticons, burying him underneath. Bumblebee's own weight only added to it and he noted with satisfaction that the other had taken some serious damage, maybe was even dead.

The smaller mechanoid didn't wait for the second Decepticon's reaction. He turned his weapons and started to fire on the 'con who was looking up from where he had pinned down Jazz. He seemed to have some problems to quickly analyze the situation.

Bumblebee was pressing on his momentary advantage and kept on firing in rapid session while he climbed off the pile of rubble he had landed on. The smaller Autobot noticed that even though every single shot hit its mark, the Decepticon didn't seem to take any damage. The shots deflected off the armor, leaving scratches and scorch marks behind, but were not able to penetrate it. He narrowed the target area, concentrating now on the region between head and shoulders hoping that he would be able to cause some damage there, but he knew there wouldn't be much more time.

Finally, the Decepticon had caught on what was happening. He lifted his arm to protect the area Bumblebee was firing at, while his other arm came around. With a high pitched noise he charged his canon. He lifted his foot off Jazz's chest, glowering at the small, yellow Autobot.

"What is this? Handsome here has a little friend? I will enjoy killing you too."

Bumblebee didn't wait for the discharge. He stopped his own barrage and leapt to the side, away from where the 'con was aiming for. The blast missed him by mere inches.

Moving as fast as he could, he dodged three more blasts.

"Stand still, you rat!"

_Yeah, right,_ Bumblebee thought, _so you can hit me better. I don't think so_.

He ducked behind one of the columns, but the Decepticon, taking a leaf out of Bumblebee's book, shoot the column up, so that the ceiling above started to come down onto the small Autobot.

Bumblebee reacted quickly and got out of the way just in time, but his next move brought him into the path of another canon blast, which nicked his left shoulder. Pain surged down his sensor network, but he ignored it – had to ignore it.

Transforming in mid leap he landed on his wheels and gunned his engine. Even though he was more maneuverable in his bi-pedal form, he was way faster in vehicle mode. And now that the Decepticon had released Jazz, Bumblebee's best strategy was to draw the 'con away, giving him a chase hopefully long enough for somebody to notice that something was very wrong in this part of the city and would come to his help.

He flashed his lights and reared his engine, baiting the Decepticon on.

The Decepticon responded by switching his weapons from accelerated particle canon to a shoulder mounted rocket launcher. Unless he had heat seeking missiles in his arsenal, Bumblebee actually thought that he had a better chance now. Chemical propelled weapons were after all slower than light particles.

Of course, he wasn't so lucky.

A swarm of mini rockets left the launcher and accelerated after the smaller Autobot. Bumblebee skirted out of the way, but the rockets kept on following. They quickly gained ground, and Bumblebee realized that he was in serious trouble now.

As quickly as he dared, he zigzagged around the columns, cutting the corners sharply. Two of the missiles didn't make the cut and exploded against one of the columns he had just dodged, but the others kept on him like glue.

He took another sharp turn, sped up and headed to the left side of the Decepticon where a long stretch of free ground would hopefully allow for top speed. The larger robot, seeing Bumblebee heading for him, stepped sideways, obviously with the intention to cut off Bee's route. He had switched back to the particle canon in his right arm and fired in rapid session at the yellow vehicle coming closer by the astro second.

Bumblebee had reached full speed by now, which meant that he was just out-running the rockets still chasing him. The down side of this was that his maneuverability was now severely limited. Not being able to avoid them, he took two blasts straight in his front spoiler. Luckily for him, this was one of the better armored parts of his body and even though said armor got badly damaged and bent, and it hurt like hell, nothing got through to any vital part.

With a reckless move, which would have garnered a stern admonition from his instructors – and some admiration from his year mates – he pulled a ninety degree turn while transforming at the same time back to bi-pedal mode. Tweel, who had shown him quite a few tricks where transformation was concerned, would be so proud if he would see him right now.

Moving quickly he rolled past the Decepticon and managed to put him between himself and the approaching missiles before the 'con knew what was going on.

His ignorance didn't last long. The remaining three missiles exploded against the larger mechanoid's armor. Though built to withstand far more abuse than Bumblebee would ever be able to take, three of his own missiles were more than even he could just easily brush off. He was knocked off his feet and shoved several yards across the floor.

With an infuriated roar the Decepticon leapt back to his feet. Any thought of the mortally wounded Jazz on the ground nearby were obviously forgotten. All he now cared about was bringing destruction to one particular small, yellow Autobot.

Said small, yellow Autobot however saw it prudent not to hang around to see what the much larger Decepticon was planning to do next. Bumblebee had once again turned back into vehicle mode and was high-tailing out of the Decepticon's immediate vicinity.

Thumping foot falls followed him as Bumblebee drove through the door of the fabrication hall. The light outside greeted him brightly. Unless the alternate mode of the Decepticon was something much faster than himself, he would actually stand a chance to get away relatively unscathed. Not that he wanted that. Okay, maybe he wanted it, but he knew that he couldn't risk it. He had to prevent the Decepticon from going back into the hall and finishing off Jazz. If that meant that Bee would have to give him a merry chase, so be it.

He checked his rear sensors only to find that the Decepticon had suddenly disappeared. For a second Bee thought that the other robot had returned back into the hall, but then he heard the whupp-whupp-whupp of long blades cutting through the air above and he knew that the Decepticon had also turned into his alternate mode. And this mode was definitely faster than his.

Missiles exploded around Bumblebee and he swerved left and right trying to avoid them.

Eventually, there was a time when even Bumblebee's luck ran out. Zigging right when he should have zagged left, a missile exploded at his flank. He was blown off his wheels and thrown onto his side.

With a triumphant laugh the Decepticon transformed back into his normal mode, landing next to Bumblebee, ready to finish him off for good. Bumblebee transformed as well, knowing that his vehicle mode wouldn't do him any good now. He didn't stand much of a chance either way, but he was determined not to go down without a fight.

Before he however could get his weapons to bear, the larger robot grabbed for his arm and pulled him off the ground. Shaking him like an insignificant little toy, he tossed him against the side of a nearby building, where Bumblebee crumpled to the ground.

Multiple systems vied for Bumblebee's attentions with messages of severe damage to various parts of his anatomy. Pain flared up again, this time impossible to ignore. It almost overwhelmed Bumblebee, but some small part of him knew that if he didn't do something – anything – right now, he would be dead for sure. And Jazz would also be dead and it would be his fault. The logic of this chain of reasoning might be flawed, but it was very real for Bumblebee right at this moment and it gave him the strength to pull himself back up onto his feet.

The Decepticon watched with uncaring red optics as Bumblebee staggered forward, his step unsteady, barely able to remain standing.

"Not giving up, are you?" he said coldly.

Straightening his stance, Bumblebee looked up, feeling unexpectedly no fear. He knew he would be dead soon, and in face of that fact, all dread had left him.

"No, I'm not giving up." He shook his head, lifting his weapons arm once again. Even at this close a range, it wasn't very likely he would be able to cause much damage to the larger and much more heavily armed Decepticon. Still, he had to try.

The Decepticon narrowed his optics. "I will never understand you Autobots. You are fools."

"We may be fools, but at least we have honor," Bumblebee replied defiantly.

"Your so called honor will be your death and the death of your friend back there. There's no escape for you."

In reply, Bumblebee fired at point blank range. He got one shot off before the larger robot intervened by reaching down and grabbing his arm again just at the elbow joint making it impossible for Bumblebee to use his weapon.

"You are so dead," the Decepticon pronounced, charging his particle canon with an angry sound.

For a moment, Bumblebee thought he heard another noise in the distance, maybe somebody calling his name, but then the Decepticon fired his weapon and Bumblebee stopped hearing anything at all.

---

"Just let me have look, Ratchet, please. As soon as I know the kid is going to be okay, I'll be a good little patient."

"You don't know how to be a good little patient, and you're not going to move an inch before I've made sure that you can't tear anything else."

Bumblebee allowed the distant argument to wash over him as he slowly brought back one system after another – or at least tried to. More than half of his sensor arrays were either not there or blocked somehow, and most of his sub-systems didn't respond at all. Strangely enough this didn't disturb him particularly; there was just some kind of quiet acceptance, as if some internal sub-routine was telling him that there was no need to panic and that everything would be fine. There was no pain either, for which he was grateful.

He had no memory of getting here, though at least he had a good idea where he was. This had to be the Academy repair bay. He had never been here before, but the tools and machines arranged around his body were a pretty good indicator.

He was a little bit surprised that he was still alive. The Decepticon had him at point blank – there was no way he could have missed him. And from the damage he had taken he had in fact not missed. But obviously he had failed to destroy his spark and the only explanation for that was that the other Autobots, possible alerted by the noise of their battle, had arrived just in time to save him. He would need to thank them later.

The argument had gone on in the background and finally he was able to identify one of the two voices as Jazz's. This meant that somehow Optimus Prime's first lieutenant had made it out of the fabrication hall alive. Bumblebee smiled internally. If this was the case then everything he had done or tried to do had not been in vain. As he obviously was still alive as well, though apparently severely damaged, everything was all right.

"All right, I give up," came finally the conclusion of the argument, and Bumblebee could sense movement in the adjoining room. "You can see him, for a cycle, no more, though I don't know what you hope to achieve by this. He'll be offline for quite a while to come."

The doorway to his room darkened by two large shapes and Bumblebee turned his head to see Jazz enter supported by a larger Autobot, whom Bumblebee assumed to be Ratchet. Bumblebee had heard of the medical officer as Ratchet was part of the team around Optimus Prime – which was probably the reason that he was here now, to take care of Jazz.

Jazz looked good all things considered. He was missing his right arm and there was severe damage to his torso and other arm, but at least he was moving pretty much under his own power. He looked to be in high spirits and he smiled when he noticed Bumblebee looking at him.

"Heya, kid, how're you doing? Doc said you'd been offline, but looks like Ratchet here doesn't know everything after all."

Bumblebee wanted to answer that he was doing fine, but his voice processor didn't respond to his commands. Next he tried his other communication units but they also failed to work, even digital, and so all he could do was to shutter his optics once.

For an astro second Jazz's smile faltered, but then it returned in full force. Guided by Ratchet he knelt down next to Bumblebee berth.

"Don't worry, kid, Ratchet here will put you back together as good as new. He's the best there is. That is if you manage to stay on his good side."

The larger Autobot harrumphed, but didn't comment on the friendly jab.

"Listen, I just want to get that out before Ratchet starts taking you apart. When this is over and you're back on your own two legs, and you're done with the Academy, look me up. I could use a 'bot like you on my team. You might have a little problem with following orders – when I said to get out of there I did mean it – but I think for once I can allow to let this slip. You did well, kid."

Even if Bumblebee had been able to communicate right now, he had no idea what he should reply to that offer. So he shuttered his eyes again, trying to let the other Autobot know how proud it made him feel.

Jazz seemed to get the message anyway. He placed his remaining hand on Bumblebee's shoulder. "Thanks for saving my life," he said softly.

"Okay," Ratchet interjected, breaking the moment, "that's enough. You now go back to your own berth for recharge, and you, Bumblebee, you better also go offline. There's a lot to do, and it won't get done with you two jabbering away like this."

Reaching up, he did some adjustments to Bumblebee's berth controls. And after that, Bumblebee wasn't aware of anything for a very long time.

The end

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